


Little Moments: Save The Date

by ReederJoe



Series: Little Moments Series [2]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: 2017!Phan, Amputation, F/F, F/M, Flashbacks, Fluff, M/M, Phan - Freeform, Phandom - Freeform, Wedding Planning, Weddings, slight angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-21
Updated: 2017-01-24
Packaged: 2018-08-16 11:05:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8100034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReederJoe/pseuds/ReederJoe
Summary: Grab your tissues and prepare for the most anticipated wedding of the year! Dan said yes, so that means sending out invitations, finding the perfect venue, and hoping the fans don't find out before the honeymoon vlog comes out. PS: This is a sequel to Little Moments





	1. Prologue- Dan

**Author's Note:**

> Guys, can you believe it? Our sons are getting married! I'm pretty excited about the continuation of this series, and I hope you enjoy the upcoming events!

**1-1-17**

"Dan, hold still," Phil giggled, pressing a palm to my bare hip. His other hand scrubbed in my hair, attempting to remove the last of the glitter. We'd had a little too much fun at Louise and Zoe's New Year's party last night, and we were both still covered in the stuff. This was the second shower, and I was starting to think we'd just have to live with it forever.

"It's not me," I protested, keeping a tight grip on the safety bar we'd installed shortly after my release from the hospital last year, per doctor's orders. "It's gravity." The bar stretching across the backside of the shower stall was one of the things that allowed me to keep my independence. Long story short, I'd broken my ankle a year and a half ago, and then some kind of infection had gotten too bad and they'd had to amputate my right leg directly below the knee. And of course, the bar was useful for other things, too. It wasn't like I'd _needed_ Phil's help with cleaning.

"Almost done," he promised, sliding his hand down to my cheek, where his thumb swiped at a spot under my eye and came away with a single speck of glitter. "You should've known better than to pop those party bombs at yourself." He gave a cheeky grin and leaned in quickly to kiss me before I could defend myself.

"In my defense," I said anyway once he'd pulled away, "I didn't realize they were aiming the wrong way until I'd already pulled the stopper." That had been a surprise- pulling the string on the party popper and getting a face-full of glitter and confetti. Phil laughed his ass off for about ten minutes straight, and Louise ended up coming to my rescue to help brush off the worst of it. "And it's not like you were much help," I added, slapping a hand down on his shoulder.

"Alright, I think that's got it," he mused, apparently deciding to ignore my statement. He kept one hand on my hip and reached back with the other to shut off the water before stepping out and grabbing a fluffy towel. He shuffled over until he stood directly in front of me and then wrapped an arm around my waist as I lifted my leg so he could pull me out. Living with someone you trusted to see you naked really helped when you only had one foot to stand on- literally. I could've managed on my own, but it was a lot more fun with him involved. He draped the towel over my shoulders and started rubbing at my backside.

"I still have both hands, you know," I informed him as he pressed himself to my chest to reach lower, effectively ruining any progress he might have made. "You're making it worse, oh god." I shoved him away- playfully, of course- and took the towel in my own hands. He just snickered and stood to the side, grabbing a fresh one and drying himself off. He got himself dressed in about thirty seconds and then had his arms around me again as I struggled with my own clothes, this time in an effort to actually help.

"I like this colour on you," he commented as he ran his fingers over the fabric of the dark plaid button-up. It was actually one of his before he outgrew it. "Matches your eyes." He smiled proudly and backed out of the bathroom before marching up the stairs.

"Blue and brown are two different colours," I called after him with a laugh. Secretly, I was glad he was past his over-protective phase- which had lasted up until about a month ago. As much as I loved him, having him right on my neck every moment of every day made me feel very self-conscious and inferior. At least now he gave me more space in some places. I knew he was probably waiting at the landing, but I liked that, and he knew it. I'd always need someone close to me- physically- in life, thanks to the lack of limbs but, even if we were still platonic, I wouldn't have wanted it to be anyone else.


	2. Phil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan's pure trash and Phil's looking at wedding invite designs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try really hard to post once a week.

**30-1-17**

"Can you believe it? Someone actually made a wedding video set to Toxic." Dan had his laptop on his stomach, slowly sliding further and further down the bed and showing a very prominent double-chin, which was pretty adorable. He moved one finger lazily around the trackpad, looking up to see my reaction to the video he'd just played.

"Are you surprised?" I asked with a laugh, sliding an arm around his shoulders as I leaned in closer. He moved his head to rest against my chest and continued scrolling. Mornings like this had become my favourite- just the two of us, almost complete silence since the builders had finally finished whatever they were working on, and a feeling of absolute security. Nothing felt better than the warmth of Dan's skin against mine, still making butterflies flutter inside me after a year and a half, or almost eight years if you really wanted to be technical about it. "The only thing I don't get is how they made it plausible."

"You were a mob boss," Dan explained with a giggle, pointing a finger at the screen. "I think I was on the 'enemy's' side"- he put air quotes around the word- "and you were supposed to kill me, but instead"-

"You've only seen it once, and already you've analyzed this thing?" I asked, grinning even though he couldn't see from this angle. I lowered my arm a bit so I could reach his slightly pudgy stomach and let my hand slip under the fabric of his shirt, rubbing a circle into the skin there. He flinched when my fingertips grazed over his abdomen.

"Jesus, your hand is freezing," he complained, reaching out to shut the computer down. He closed the laptop and set it off to the side before reaching down to take my hand in his own and twining our fingers together. "I may have already seen it," he added sheepishly, snuggling in closer to my side. "Four times."

"And you wonder why people keep photoshopping you in wedding dresses," I stated, eliciting a soft smack from his palm. "You think they know?"

"I think tumblr would've broken down if they knew," Dan said, patting my arm. "In fact, all social media would be in flaming ruins if the world knew that _no homo Howell_ was engaged to his male best friend."

"I can't wait to see their reaction when the vlog goes up," I mused, already having planned out several possibilities. We'd agreed a while back to make the fans wait until the reception before posting anything. It was still a while to wait, but we'd be outing ourselves as a married couple through a 'Day in the Life" video focusing on the wedding and reception afterwards. And then we'd run off to a secluded island for our honeymoon, far enough away that they'd never be able to find us. "August sixteenth is a long way away, though, still."

"I still can't believe you're enforcing that," Dan sighed, but I knew he was just as excited as I was. Even as I thought of it, I could see him holding back a smile. "It's such a cliché."

"It's cheesy and romantic and everything a wedding should be," I argued, squeezing his shoulders. "And it'll be a day that can be dedicated just to that, and not surrounded by the phandom in some way."

He was silent for a moment, probably coming up with some kind of smartass comment, but after a few seconds, he just said, "This is true," with a nod. "I guess you're special, because I wouldn't do this for anyone else." He let out a _yelp_ when I suddenly tugged him over to lie on top of me, and then he moved one of his hands to my chest for support as he shifted until he was straddling me. His fingers slid up to cup my cheek as he leaned down to press his lips to my ear, whispering, "By the way, happy birthday." He left a trail of kisses, starting with the lobe of my ear and across my neck, once on the tip of my nose, causing him to let out a giggle as I wrinkled my nose up, and finally he came to rest at the corner of my mouth, pressing his lips to mine and adding the words, "Old man," before parting his lips slightly and placing his other hand on my neck, expertly evading my own palm aimed at his arm.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**2-2-17**

"I honestly don't think you're worth it," Dan said as he thumbed through one of the magazines Louise had brought over. She and Zoe had taken over the design and decorating part of the wedding, much to mine and Dan's delight. Neither of us knew anything of colour-coordination or which napkins matched what silverware, and if it had been up to us we'd have probably just eloped. "Look at this shit! Four hours to find the perfect tuxedo? There's only about four choices for guys- did they spend an hour on each one?"

"That's nothing," I said, holding out the catalogue I'd found. "This guy spent months looking for his." Dan looked over with wide eyes and let out a lout sigh before snapping the book shut and sliding it across the coffee table. "Imagine if we were stereotypical. We'd never get through it!"

Dan pulled the magazine from my hands and tossed it behind him before crawling into my lap and wrapping his arms around my neck. "Tell me again why we're allowing this monstrosity?" He'd removed his prosthetic for the night, so he had to sit a certain way in order to prevent one of us from getting smacked by his knee. I wound my own arms around his waist and held him tight against me. He leaned into the embrace and shuddered lightly, but didn't say anything else. I knew how stressful it had to be for him- after everything he'd been through in the past two years, I'd have expected a total meltdown (multiple meltdowns, to be honest, but he was a lot tougher than I'd ever known) but he seemed content to simply protest against the elaborate decisions Zoe and Louise kept making on our behalf. I smiled widely when I remembered the one thing we were both excited about.

"Cake testing," I reminded him, and he tilted his head a bit, just enough to look into my eyes. I grinned and raised an eyebrow. "Remember the pictures? Zoe said we could have an entire party dedicated to it."

"That's one cliché I can get behind." He nuzzled his head into my neck, letting his fringe brush against my ear, tickling my skin. I rested a hand on his back, patting gently, and I could feel him starting to sag against me as he fell asleep. Louise would be here soon with more design ideas, but for now I was more than content to hold him close and listen to his quiet breathing.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

**4-2-17**

"Dan's out," I said to the chat, answering at least half the questions flowing through. "He'll be back later." It wasn't even a lie- Chris had shown up an hour ago with a long list of things he needed to do in preparation, and practically tossed Dan over his shoulder as he drug him out the door.

_**Where's he going?** _

_**Already with the secret meetings?** _

_**When will he be back** _

"I don't know," I lied, eyeing the camera lens with a smirk. "Guess you'll just have to wait and see." I was actually surprised, because the live show was almost over, and this was the first time I'd seen them mention Dan. Usually I only got about ten minutes in before they started demanding his presence. Of course, things had died down considerably since that day over a year ago, when Dan had managed to mentally scar the entirety of tumblr with nothing but powder and water. Now that it was all out in the open, there was no snooping necessary and people were finding other things to do with their time (read: waiting impatiently for one of us to slip up and make out on camera). I was on air for another five minutes, saying goodbye to everyone I could catch in the messages, and then the screen went black before showing the loading that always appeared right before someone else was about to go live.

I shut the laptop down and leaned back into the cushions on the sofa. It was almost Valentine's Day, and I'd been spending a lot of time thinking about it. It wouldn't be our first one _together_ , but we hadn't done anything special last year because of all the emotional trauma going on. Dan was in a pretty fragile state, having nightmares at least once a week- though thankfully only a handful of them were about me leaving for some reason- and generally hating a lot of things because there were so many things he couldn't do anymore. Luckily, between the therapist and me, we were able to convince him that he was wrong about that, that he _could_ still do all that stuff. Our fans had been equally supportive, sending constant messages of positivity and even mailing things to us. Our office was still full of unopened boxes, simply because we didn't have time to unwrap them all at once. My current system was taking one from the stockpile whenever Dan started feeling crisis-ey, and that was happening less and less often these days.

I jumped up when the doorbell rang. I wondered who it was as I made my way toward the door, because Dan and Chris would've just come on in. I pulled the knob and was nearly assaulted by Louise and Zoe, who burst into the flat with arms full of papers and huge smiles.

"Get Dan," Louise said at the same time that Zoe sang, "We've got stationery!"

"He's out with Chris," I told them with a laugh, stepping to the side so they could reach the stairs. I reached out to take half the pile from Zoe's arms because it looked like everything was about to fall. "First fitting of the season."

"How come you're not with them?"

"It's supposed to be a secret, remember?" I followed them up the stairs- they knew what they were doing with this stuff better than I did- and dropped the envelopes down on the dining table once we reached the lounge. "If anyone caught us in the shop together, they'd know right away."

"Oh, right," Zoe said as she sunk down in the orange chair and began sorting through the stacks of paper. "Louise and I took it upon ourselves to handle this part of the wedding. God knows you and Dan haven't a clue." She smiled sweetly and dodged my arm when I went to smack her shoulder lightly. She was right, anyway; we had no idea, nor did we particularly care what kind of shape was printed on the invitations, but I'd never say that to them. They both lived for this kind of thing.

"We've narrowed it down quite a bit," Louise explained, sitting down across from Zoe. I looked between them for a moment and then down at the massive pile of paper before taking a seat next to Zoe. "There are four choices here." She began placing sheets in separate stacks.

"Alright."

"This one has abstracts," Louise continued, gesturing to one set with stripes and swirly patterns. "Daisies," she said, touching another set with a whole lot of flowers drawn on. "'Romantic'." She stuck one hand up to make air quotes before sliding a small stack of envelopes over. They were full of hearts and swirls and the word _love_ written in every available space. That was too much, even for me.

"And here's a generic," Zoe cut in, pushing her stack over. It was plain white with a few silver swirls and looked pretty boring. "I doubt you'll pick this one, but I figured we should have it in the choices just in case." After a moment, she added, "I don't think you'll pick the hearts one, either, but it was too cute to throw out." She gave a sheepish smile and sat back in her chair. Louise watched me carefully, and I wondered which one was her favourite.

"You're making me choose?" I asked incredulously, looking down at each set of papers. I liked the abstract and the ones with flowers, but I'd assumed they were going to take control over every aspect of this. I hadn't expected to be given a choice in the matter. I laughed, causing them both to give me strange looks.

"We didn't want you to think we were too controlling," Louise explained, and then both of them giggled, covering the mouths with their hands. "We can wait until Dan gets back and see what he thinks." I usually had at least a small inkling of an idea how he'd feel about something, but this was one thing I had no clue about. I guess we would all be surprised this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wedding date does have significance!


	3. Dan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lazy morning fluff  
> Finding a caterer and Phil stopping an existential crisis before it can happen  
> Wedding invitations!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As we go through the story, I'll be releasing different things to my tumblr that go along with the story (wedding invites, decorations, the rings! etc etc) so keep an eye out for that.

**28-2-17**

It was a major conflict. On the one hand, I had to go through the motions of preparing my leg- well, stump, but I couldn’t say the word without cringing- for the prosthetic. Cleaning the area, rolling on the silicon sleeve, and making sure the artificial joints clicked properly into place so that I didn’t fall over once I stood up. I hardly ever needed the crutch these days, but it still stood in the corner by the window. Sometimes I found myself glaring at it for no particular reason.

            On the other hand, I woke up to the sight and feeling of Phil nestled beside me. Sometimes he’d be in front of me- those rare nights when I’d wanted to be the big spoon- but most mornings he was hugging me from behind, arms wrapped snugly around my waist and nose pressed into my back. I’d learned pretty quickly that he was basically a snuggle monster, and it was honestly one of my favourite things about him.

            This morning was no different.

            I could feel his fingers on my stomach, tracing light patterns over the skin below my navel, barely brushing the waistband of my pyjama pants every few seconds. I knew he was awake and he knew I was awake, but neither of us acknowledged it just yet. Instead, he shuffled closer to press the side of his face between my shoulder blades. When I felt his cheek on my bare skin, I twisted away slightly to roll over and face him, grinning at the sight of his sleepy smile and heavy eyelids. “Hey,” he whispered, leaning in to kiss the corner of my lips softly.

            “Hey,” I repeated, and he let out a soft giggle as he leaned in once more to kiss me properly. It was moments like these that made me wonder- sometimes out loud- how we’d gotten through so many years without that touch. The moment didn’t last long, though, because there were a lot of things to do today, and we’d have to get up soon if we wanted to be productive. I sighed loudly as I shuffled away from him and toward the edge of the bed, but he just wrapped his arms more snugly around my waist.

            “I think we should stay right here,” Phil decided, “all day.” I looked up at him for a moment, taking in the way his blue eyes sparkled even though they were half-closed, and I was almost tempted to give in and let him have his way

            “As nice as that sounds,” I told him instead, pulling free from his grasp and sitting up in the bed, “We only have about ten minutes until Louise gets here.” I laughed at the noise he made- neither of us were fans of the torturous process that was wedding planning- and instinctively leaned back into his touch when he sat up and pressed a palm to my back. I scooted to the edge of the bed and leaned forward to attach my prosthesis. The mechanism clicked into place right away, and I decided today would be a good day.

            It usually took a few steps before my body remembered how to walk with half a fake leg, but every day was easier than the last. Once we were dressed, Phil went on to the kitchen and I followed after him slowly.

 

 

2-3-17

           

            “She’ll be catering,” Louise said, gesturing to the screen. The video was one of Rosanna Pansino’s _Nerdy Nummies_ series. “She’s quite good.”

            “Nice,” Phil said approvingly. The video played a few seconds longer and then Louise closed the laptop and turned to face us at the dining table.

            “What do you think?” she asked as she clasped her hands together. She seemed excited by the prospect of it all, and I got the feeling she was probably biased in the matter. “I’ve already talked with her and she’s happy to do it. All we need is your approval.”

            I glanced toward Phil and saw that he was smiling widely and nodding his head. He’d always been happy-go-lucky about damn near everything in his life. My first instinct was to play Devil’s Advocate and somehow find a reason Rosanna couldn’t possibly do the job. Phil’s eyes met mine as I parted my lips to ask the first question, but before I could get a word out there was a pressure on my thigh and I looked down to see Phil’s hand gripping my leg.

            “It’ll work,” he assured me softly, leaning over to press a kiss to my cheek, right above my dimple. “You’ve seen how much work she puts into her videos and recipes.” He let his forehead rest against mine for a moment as he reached for my hands and said again, “It’ll work.”

            There was silence for a full minute before I looked back to Louise and said, “I guess we’ve found our caterer,” with what I hoped looked like a genuine smile on my face. Phil gave my fingers a squeeze and I leaned back in the chair, sighing quietly.

            “Excellent!” Louise squealed, clapping her hands together. “I’ll give her the good news tomorrow. She’ll be so excited!”

            “Really?” I asked before I could stop myself.

            “Yes, of course, silly,” Louise told me, patting my arm. “She’s a huge fan of you two.”

            “Everyone loves us, remember, Dan?” Phil offered, nudging my side with an elbow. “This is going to be the most anticipated wedding ever, and nobody even knows about it yet.”

            “Yeah, you’re probably right,” I said with a laugh, leaning into his side. His arm came around my shoulders and he tugged his fingers through my hair over and over. It was one sure-fire way to make me relax and he knew that.

            “Of course,” he agreed. “I’m always right.”

 

           

 

 

7-3-17

 

            Louise had given us four choices for the wedding invitations, but in the end we’d chosen something else entirely. We’d come pretty close to choosing the abstract design with the colourful swirls, but after insisting on a web search I’d come across something I couldn’t resist using. It wasn’t really like anything else in our style, but it seemed perfect for the situation.

            “They’re gorgeous,” Zoe gushed, lifting one of the heavy slips of paper from the dining table. “I’m slightly miffed you didn’t like our choices, but I’ll get over it because this is just too pretty not to use.”

            “It’s not that we didn’t like them,” I started for what seemed like the hundredth time that week, “This one just popped into my view and it was like a sign or something.”

            “I know, I know,” Zoe said, waving her free hand in my direction. “I don’t blame you.”

            “They really are beautiful,” Louise agreed as she walked through the door into the lounge. Phil trailed behind her, wearing a very pained expression and glaring toward the garment bag draped over Louise’s shoulder. She’d dragged him out to the tailor shop for another fitting- I still wasn’t sure why so many of them were necessary but both girls insisted on one every week now- and Phil was not a fan. He walked over to where I sat on the sofa and dropped down beside me, automatically taking my hand in his and rubbing his thumb over my knuckles.

            “Enjoy your monkey suit?” I teased, dodging the fingers that snapped forward to pinch my wrist. With a grin, I added, “You’ll look great, don’t worry.”

            “Your turn tomorrow,” Louise informed me, glancing up from her place at the table. She and Zoe were now pointing out the minor details of our wedding invitations, most notably the wispy feathers spread out in random directions. I wasn’t entirely sure why I’d been so drawn to the feather design, but it felt perfect. “I’m surprised you two haven’t blabbed to each other yet.”

            “Please, Lou,” Phil said, “we promised to keep it a secret. We’re both technically brides here.”

            I couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Phil, I don’t think that’s quite right.” He gave my palm a squeeze in response before letting out a chuckle of his own. “It’s still a nice gesture, though.” I leaned over a bit to rest my head on his shoulder and noticed Zoe watching with a big smile and wide eyes. She was a fangirl above all else.

            “We’ll send these out tomorrow morning,” Louise told us, and I raised up to see her moving the papers into different stacks. Every few seconds she’d lift one up and press something into the corner- stamps, I assumed- and place it down on the other end of the table. “Have you thought any about the processional?”

            “Come on, Louise,” I said with a roll of my eyes, “you already know.”

            She made a face of mock hurt and tossed her hair from one side to the other. “It’s nice to be asked, though.”

            I started to say something, but Phil stopped me with a pat on my knee as he said, “Louise, won’t you please be our maid of honour?”

            She was silent for a moment, pretending to think it over while all three of us tried to keep a straight face, and then she finally opened her mouth to say, “Well, if you insist.” Her lips curled up into a grin as she poked her tongue out to lick an envelope for the next invitation. Phil and I exchanged an amused expression, and I knew we were both thinking the same thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed that! I'll be posting the wedding invite in the next few weeks. I think you're going to like it!


	4. Phil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lawrence the tailor and so much fluff  
> Not much of a plot, unless you count angsty dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! It's been like three weeks since i updated, but I'm here now

2-4-17

                “Alright, turn please.” I shifted around until the man placed a dark hand on my knee. The three-paneled mirror threw my reflection back at me in all directions, and I watched the one to my left as he began sticking little pins into the hem of my pants. I caught sight of myself and realized I was making a very pained expression.

            Chris chuckled behind me, taking a drink from the wine bottle they’d brought out earlier.

            “You know, this”- he lifted the bottle by its neck- “might be the only good part of these torture sessions.” He sat forward for a moment and reached out with his free arm to touch the fabric hanging off my right side. “I have to admit, though- you look pretty hot.” He leaned back again before the tailor could catch him messing with my clothes and laughed again. “Dan’s going to lose his shit when he sees you.”

            “What do you have to complain about?” I demanded, meeting his eyes through the mirror. “All you have to do is sit there. I’m the one getting poked and prodded and who knows what else.” My eyes trialed down at the last part to see the man- I thought his name was Lawrence- glaring at me. “Sorry,” I added quickly, “I just really hate this.”

            “Must love him an awful lot then,” Lawrence acknowledged with a nod, moving over to my other side for the thousandth time. At least he hadn’t drawn blood yet. “He gives me the same attitude, don’t worry.” There was a hint of a smile playing on his lips now, and he stood up with a hand on his bald head to admire his work. After a moment, he clapped his hands together and smiled fully, showing off perfectly white teeth. “I think that’ll do it for today.”

            As soon as I heard the words, I reached for the sleeve of the jacket to pull it off, and his voice rang in once more with a very emphasized, “ _Carefully_!”

            “He’s the only one I’d do this for,” I said after the suit was tucked safely in the black garment bag hanging on the door. “Even then, it’s iffy,” I added with a grin. Lawrence grinned with me and then went over to his desk in the corner of the room. “I didn’t really have much choice in the matter. Louise is a drill

sergeant.”

            “But she’s doing most of the work,” Chris reminded me, and I nodded once in agreement. Who knew what would happen if Dan and I had to do all this planning on our own. We’d have probably killed each other by now. At least with Louise and Zoe taking all creative reigns, the only thing we had to do was show up where they told us to go and react enthusiastically when they revealed a new step in the plan. Of course, I could still remember the day she’d announced the venue…

 

*  *  *

            “Louise, are you kidding me?” Dan gaped at the paper she’d just handed him, staring at the words printed on the shiny surface. It was a photo of someone’s reception that had been posted online to advertise. If I was being perfectly honest with myself, I really liked the idea of celebrating our wedding in a giant treehouse, but- “ _Six_ hours away!”

            “Five and a half, actually,” Louise corrected, rolling her eyes as she took the picture back. “You’ve got to look at the rest of the photos, Dan. This is perfect!” His eyes were wide as he raised his chin to look at her, and I could feel the tension bubbling inside him. My hand reached out to take his and he gripped my fingers tightly. He hated no having control, even as he simultaneously loved not having to worry so much about things that were too stressful.

            “Dan, sweetie,” Louise continued, “It’s not exactly rare for a couple to have their wedding in a place that’s nowhere near where they live.” Dan’s eyes flickered over to meet mine briefly, glistening slightly. “Trust me.”

            “We’d be traveling to the other end of the country,” Dan argued.

            “People do things like that all the time,” Louise countered, leaning forward in the arm chair to pat his good knee. “It’s going to be fine.”

            “But”-

            “We could have a party in a treehouse,” I told him as I reached for the sheet of paper and pointed to the cluster of tables in the corner of the photo. “How many people can say they’ve done that?”

            “Please,” Dan scoffed, leaning into my side, “You’d be the one to fall out and become the next meme.” We both laughed at that, and I felt his fringe tickle my cheek as he pressed himself closer.

            “You’re already a meme,” I said as I wrapped an arm around his waist. “We could be the Meme Team.” He shoved himself away from me when I said that, staring incredulously.

            “I actually hate you for saying that.” He tried to sound serious, but his lips curled up in a smile and his sad dimple appeared- I stuck my other hand out to poke at it and he swatted me away, saying, “Hands off the merchandise.”

            “So,” I said after a moment of silence. “The Alnwick Garden.” Louise grinned in response.

 

*  *  *

I had just stepped into the lounge when I heard Dan shuffling around in the hallway. Every other step was a muted _thunk_ and after a few seconds he was standing by the arm of the sofa, crutch poised under his right arm.

“How was dress-up?” he asked when I turned around to face him. He wore a devilish grin as he knew how much I despised these visits with the tailor. Before I could respond, he brought out his left arm and placed his hand on my shoulder. My own arms went automatically to wrap around him and he let the crutch fall backward once I had a good grip. He put entirely too much trust in me in these moments.

“Terrible,” I said as I leaned in to kiss him softly. I locked my fingers together at the small of his back and felt his fingers curling under my ears as he melted into the embrace. He swiped his thumbs over my cheeks, causing me to smile and break the kiss. We both giggled at that, and I pulled away just enough to touch our foreheads together. “The only thing keeping me alive is the knowledge that you’re suffering, too.”

“Couples’ torture,” Dan murmured as I leaned in to press my lips to his again.

 

 

5-4-17

 

          The lights were almost too bright. I stood at the altar, waiting for the moment when _he_ would appear at the end of the aisle. Louise stood across from me, dressed in silky peach, Chris and PJ stood behind me, both in black. The officiator stood between us, smiling softly as she looked around. There was a light breeze, causing a few white petals to fall from the garlands hanging over the arch. As I reached up to pluck one from my shoulder, it could have been a scene straight from the movies.

            I jumped when the music started, and my eyes went to the end of the rows of chairs, where Dan would be in just a few seconds.

            Thirty seconds passed. I glanced over to Louise, but she was staring intently at the spot where Dan was supposed to be. I looked back to the end of the aisle, but it was still empty.

            Another minute. A few rows of people were looking around, turning their heads, whispering to each other. Still no sign of him.

            “Where is he?” Louise whispered fiercely in my direction, but all I could do was shake my head. I hadn’t seen him since the night before. Chris or PJ put a supporting hand on my shoulder as Louise hiked her skirt up on one side and made her way down the aisle to the out building behind a cluster of trees. Everyone was either staring at me or watching her, and I could feel my heart rising up into my throat.

            Two more minutes went by, and Louise came out of the shed slowly, one hand on her forehead and the other on her hip. The whispers swirled around with mentions of car accidents and abandonment, and I found myself walking toward Louise as the music trailed off to silence and the air thinned out until I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

            I saw the tears on her cheeks and froze in my tracks. She glanced up to meet my eyes and looked away before I could say anything. I was almost too afraid to go in there and see what was making her cry right now, but the curiosity was too much at this point. I pushed past her and stepped into the tiny building, where there was a note taped to the surface of the folding table we’d set up the day before. We had planned to use this building as a makeshift dressing room since the wedding was taking place outdoors.

            _I’m sorry_ were the first words written on the paper, and my legs threatened to give out on me. My arm shot out to grip the edge of the table and I read the rest of the message with shaking breaths. _I’m not ready for this. I hope you’ll forgive me_. I sunk to my knees and clenched the fist that held the note, and I realized there was something hard in the middle of the paper wad. It clattered to the floor and I picked it up with trembling fingers, looking over the thin black line that ran in the center of his engagement ring.

            Louise came in eventually, placing a hand on my shoulder and sniffling quietly. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, but all I could hear was how it would’ve sounded in his voice, and suddenly it was really hard to hold back the tears. “Phil?”

            I glanced up at her, surprised by how wide her eyes were. Her lips parted, and she said my name again, but louder. “Phil!”

            My eyes opened, and I wondered when I’d closed them. “Phil?” I heard his voice beside me, panicked and frantic, and I opened my mouth to ask him why he’d left me, but no words came out, and he was leaning closer to say, “Baby, wake up.”

            “What?” I mumbled, closing my eyes again. Wake up? Had it not actually happened? After a few seconds, my eyes shot open and I turned my head to look at him. His hair was all over the place, pupils blown out as he watched me with an expression of concern. One of his hands reached out to touch my cheek- I was tempted to swat it away.

            “You were crying,” he said, scooting closer and rubbing his thumb over my eyes. “What happened?”

            “You’re still here,” I said in reply, not quite awake yet. I was still blinking out the images in my head. I reached for my pocket, where I thought I’d stashed the ring, and said, “Do you want it back?”

            “Want what back?” Dan asked, and my face fell. Was he playing dumb so he wouldn’t have to say no? I patted my pants leg and let out a little gasp when I realized there were no pockets, and the material was way too soft. Dan’s hand came down to cover mine, and with a gasp, I realized what was going on. “Phi- _oof_ ”. He let out a groan when I lunged forward and tackled him in a tight hug. For a solid minute, all I could do was hold him to my chest, trying to calm myself down, and he just sat there in my arms.

            Eventually, I found the strength to pull away and he asked again, “What happened?” I didn’t even really want to tell him, because now that I was awake, I realized how stupid it was to let myself get so worked up over a dream, but the way he was looking at me with glassy eyes was enough to break any resolve I might have had left. It was apparently hurting him just as much and he didn’t even know what was going on yet.

            “It was our wedding day,” I said, instinctively pulling him close again. “You left.”

            That was all I got out before his lips were on mine, effectively silencing my sob story. He held himself up with one hand and pressed the other to my face, fingers curling into the soft hairs at the back of my head. “That’s never going to happen,” he whispered after a while, breath tickling my skin. “I promise.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Also, the wedding invitation can be found on my tumblr (reederjoe)


	5. Dan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has a different opinion on what kind of cake they should get. Dan has a crisis over everything that's happened, but Phil is there (once again) to save the day. Louise declares herself the florist for their wedding that is literally taking place in a flower garden (because there's not such thing as too much color, right?)  
> Something unexpected happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guess who's back with another random update??

**29-4-17**

 

“It should be illegal for cake to taste this good,” Phil commented as he looked down at the row of plates in front of us. One saucer held red velvet, another had German chocolate, and so on down the line. There were five different cakes to choose from, and Phil and I were supposed to make a decision.

            “Personally,” Louise was saying as she stuck a tiny fork in her mouth, “I like lemon the best.” Zoe made a face at her, and I laughed. Lemon was a stupid choice for cake.

            “You can’t be serious,” Alfie interjected before Zoe could respond. “Who puts lemon flavor in cake frosting?” He stuck a toothpick in a slice of the double chocolate and continued with, “This here is the only proper way.” He glanced over at Zoe and added, “We need this one at our wedding.” 

            “The strawberry is pretty good,” Tyler announced in a screeching voice as he came up behind Alfie’s shoulder. He held a plate in one hand and lifted the fork for emphasis. “I say this one.”

            “Alright, alright,” Zoe huffed, trying to be serious. “None of you are making the choice today. This is Dan and Phil’s big decision to make. Quite possibly the most important one they’ll make.”

            “But no pressure, right?” I said with a grin. I held my hands together in my lap under the table, and Phil reached over to squeeze my fingers. I squeezed back and he took my hand in his. I could feel the little band of metal pressing into my palm- it was actually kind of comforting.

            “Right,” Zoe agreed in her business tone. “Now let’s get started.”

 

X  X  X  X  X

 

            It was nearly midnight by the time we got home. We were both slightly hyper from all the sweets we’d been into at the cake party, and I had a feeling neither of us would get much sleep tonight.

            Phil went up to the office while I settled onto the sofa and went to work with removing my prosthetic. We’d walked so much today it was actually sore, and the last thing I needed right now was some kind of skin breakdown. As I unscrewed the latch that kept it tight around my stump, I couldn’t help but think about how things might be right now if I’d never lost my leg. If I’d never fallen down the stairs and caused myself a lifetime of emotional trauma by accidentally kissing Phil. What would we be doing right now? I was pretty sure we wouldn’t be planning a wedding. It seemed so natural to me now- I couldn’t imagine _not_ being married to him.

            The idea that this one simple thing had changed so much about our lives was enough to send me into crisis mode, and suddenly it felt like I couldn’t breathe. There was pressure everywhere, and I just wanted to run from it. A harsh laugh escaped my throat when I realized I literally couldn’t run away.

            “Hey, Dan,” Phil called out, sounding far away, and I opened my mouth to respond. No sound came out, of course, and I focused my attention on breathing. He’d be in here in a minute and he didn’t need to see this. He’d only seen these episodes from me a handful of times, even after we’d started sharing a bed. I heard him call out again, closer, and I hastily wiped at my face to get rid of any tears that might have gotten out. “You have to see this”-

            He stopped mid-sentence and I knew it was because he’d just walked through the door and seen me with my hands covering my face.

            “What’s wrong? Are you okay?” I lowered one hand when Phil started rambling, and I saw him look right at the fake leg sitting beside me, and then back to me while saying, “Are you hurt?”

            “Just tired,” I told him honestly, resisting the urge to scrape my fingernails across my cheeks. It was very dissatisfying, but I managed to pry my hands away and let them fall at my sides. Phil came over and sat down beside me, taking my right hand in both of his and before I could react, he’d pulled me sideways into his lap.

            “How’s your leg?” He asked, reaching down to massage the reddening skin. I shrugged one shoulder and leaned into his chest, picking at a loose string on his shirt. His other hand came up to cover mine where I’d started pulling at the thread, and he said, “Talk to me.” I’d heard those words a thousand times since the day I’d met him. He’d always been the one person I couldn’t hide from, even when he didn’t act like he knew anything. I’d learned a long time ago that he probably already knew what was wrong, so I should just stop bullshitting and get it off my chest. Even before that kiss, he was always the best listener.

            “I was thinking,” I began after a moment, and I felt him wrap an arm around me and tighten his grip. He knew what it meant when I started thinking. “Last year, everything that happened.”

            “What about it?” He prompted as he pressed his lips to my forehead.

            “What if it hadn’t happened?” I finally said, and Phil made a little noise of ascension, which I took to mean he understood what I meant. “Me tripping, nearly killing myself, kissing you?”

            “I think about that sometimes,” Phil said after a minute of silence. “I want to say that we’d have ended up in bed some other way, but I don’t think it was going to happen without divine intervention.” He laughed then, shaking us both, and I couldn’t help but laugh with him. It was such a Dan-&-Phil way to end up together. “But for what it’s worth, I think I could’ve done a lot worse.”

            “So I should just not worry and be thankful for my clumsiness?” I questioned with a smirk as I laid my head on his shoulder. His hand came up to touch my face, fingers splaying out over my cheek.

            “I know better than to tell you not to worry.”

            “I love you, Phil.”

            “I love you, too, Danny.” He laughed again when I smacked his arm.

 

**5-5-17**

We’d settled just about everything. The invitations were out, Rosanna was planning a menu for us- she’d also recruited a couple of her cooking friends, Louise was finalizing reservations at the Alnwick Garden, and all Phil and I had to do was approve their decisions. It might have been the least stressful wedding anyone had ever planned.

            Of course, life has a way of balancing out the good with the bad. Breaking my ankle was the bad, but ending up with Phil was the good. Losing my leg was the bad, and ending up engaged to Phil was the good. It seemed that every time something bad happened, something good would soon follow. So what was going to happen now that something good had happened? I honestly couldn’t believe how smoothly the wedding plans were going, and we’d even started receiving RSVP’s back on the first people we’d sent out to. Just about everyone we’d invited would be able to make it, and the guest list was steadily growing. Even Leslie Pettifer, the nurse who’d taken care of me after my amputation, would be coming with her girlfriend. Every time Louise or Zoe would arrive with a new stack of envelopes, we’d all gather at the dining table and sort out where we wanted everyone to sit. The tables were slowly filling up, and this was quickly becoming the largest event I’d ever been a part of. I tried not to think too much about the fact that I was right under the spotlight. At least I had Phil.

 

X  X  X  X  X

 

Louise had found the perfect florist- herself.

            “Of course it’s a great idea, Phil,” she’d remarked when he commented on the listing we’d been reviewing. “The theme of a wedding tells you things about the couple that you’d have never thought about. It really lets you get deep down inside.” She’d made a fist then, shook it once. She was making it out to be some secret discovery, and I had to laugh at the thought of our flower choice revealing something deep and meaningful.

            “And what better person to present that theme than the one person who knows you better than anyone else?”

            “That’d be Phil, then, technically,” I said, holding up our conjoined hands. Phil nodded in agreement, and Louise rolled her eyes.

            “The only thing he knows that I don’t,” Louise started, jabbing a finger accusingly at us, “is how”-

            “We’re only kidding, Lou,” Phil cut in, interrupting whatever embarrassing thing Louise had been about to say. “We’d be honoured to have you present our wedding theme.” Her eyes lit up almost immediately. She was born to be a party planner.

            “Great! I already have your theme sorted out,” Louise informed us as she hopped up from the sofa. She was out the door before we could say anything else and then she was back not even a minute later. She held a stack of photos in one hand and a potted plant in the other.

            “How long have you been planning this?” Phil asked, leaning forward.

            “Just since February,” she muttered under her breath, but she couldn’t hide the smirk on her face when she added, “Last February.”

            “Okay, so you’re actual trash,” I said with a nod. She ignored my comment and reached forward to hand us each half the stack she’d brought in. I laughed at loud when I read the name of the first flower she apparently thought we needed. “You know there are literally thousands of flowers at the Alnwick Garden, right?”

            “It’s about making a statement, Dan, dear,” Louise retorted as she snatched the picture from my grip. “The Garden is famous for its flowers, but we’re going to add more.”

            “Dan, it’s hopeless,” Phil told me, patting my arm gently and leaning over to kiss my cheek. “She’s got her heart set on this.”

            “My sinuses are going to be viciously murdered because of you two,” I complained, but deep down I knew it’d be worth it. Anything that led to me being able to spend the rest of my life with the person currently sat right beside me. Without thinking, my hands went to the ring on my finger, twisting it round a few times. It was still strange to feel the foreign object on my skin- especially since I’d never been a guy who liked jewelry. But as weird as it was, whenever I did have to take it off (basically every time we filmed or did a live show) I’d find myself reaching for it and feeling almost naked when it wasn’t there.

            I looked back down at the list. Adam's needle, lilac, and yellow peonies. These were the flowers that were supposed to represent mine and Phil's life. "So what do they mean?" I asked, lifting the page. Louise smiled, and I knew it was something that was sure would bite me in the ass later. 

           "Adam's needle," Louise explained, showing us the photo of a mound of what looked like white roses, but they apparently weren't roses. They were wrapped around an archway, hanging down in streams. "They represent friendship. Best friends, to be exact." She grinned widely at that, and I had to admit that it was fitting. "Lilac," she continued, holding up the next one, "represents first love." 

          "That's actually pretty amazing, Lou," Phil mused, and I nodded in agreement.

          "One more," she said in response, reaching for the plant she'd brought in. "This is the Bartzella Itoh Peony. They said if you incorporate them into your wedding, you'll have a happy life together." Phil and I both looked at the bushy green mound, dotted every few inches with a yellow flower that looked a lot like a regular peony, but what did I know? This one was obviously fancier.

          "Happy wife, happy life, right Dan?" Phil declared, and I slapped my hand over his mouth. He said it again, muffled by my fingers, and then laughed at my groan. He was lucky I loved him so much.

X  X  X  X  X

 

            “I refuse to kiss you with that horrible thing on your face.” Phil crossed his arms over his chest and I feigned offense, but I couldn’t even take me seriously, so I wiped my mouth with my sleeve and set the milk down on the counter.

            “It’s rich in Vitamin D,” I reminded him as he finally leaned in to kiss me, “but not as rich as your dick.” He groaned-loudly-against my lips and pulled away when I started laughing.

            “You’re lucky I love you so much,” Phil said after a moment, and I wrapped my arms around his waist to pull him back for another kiss.

            “I really am,” I agreed, and he hugged me closer. I let my head rest on his shoulder while his hands trailed down my sides. We could’ve stayed like that forever, but there was suddenly a niggling feeling in the back of my mind, and I ended up jerking out of his arms when the thought plowed into the spotlight.

            “What’s wrong?” Phil asked automatically, probably from years of observing my expressions. I wasn’t lying when I told Louise he was the one who knew me better than anyone else. I did wonder, though, how he could be so observant of me and so clueless about himself.

            “It’s probably nothing,” I assured him, and he arched an eyebrow. “It’d gone away for a while, so I thought it was just a fluke.” He held me at arm’s length, waiting ever-patiently for me to get to the point. “Maybe we should look into it, though.”

            “What are you on about?” He finally asked.

            “Your lips are salty again,” I told him, and he made a little _ahah_ sound. I couldn’t figure out why, exactly, but I was getting a pretty bad feeling about the whole thing. “Maybe you should see a doctor.”

            “It’s been going on my whole life,” Phil reminded me, but that didn’t help anything. If anything, it made it worse. Did that mean nobody knew why? Nobody knowing why usually meant it was some kind of rare terminal illness. “Are you okay?” He asked suddenly, looking down, and I followed his gaze to see my hands twisted into the fabric of his shirt. My knuckles were white, and I slowly released my grip. “Okay, how about this,” he suggested, tugging me close again, chest-to-chest. It felt nice, even more so when I tucked my chin into his neck. “I’ll make a call tomorrow.”

            “Good,” I managed. “I know it’s probably nothing, but”-

            “But nothing,” Phil said as he pressed his chin to my shoulder. “I love you, too.”

 

X  X  X  X  X

 

            It was pitch black. My eyes shot open with the thought that something terrible was about to happen. I turned to look at Phil, who seemed to be okay. He slept soundlessly, which was just like every other night. He was on his side, one arm draped over my chest. The weight of it was comforting.

            I twisted around to sit up in the bed and discovered my first clue when his arm slipped off my body and dropped to the mattress with no resistance. Part of me thought that he was just in a deep sleep, or the movement would make him wake up, but his chest kept rising and falling steadily. He didn’t give any indication that I’d disturbed him.

            “Phil,” I said without meaning to. Of course he didn’t respond to it- he’d slept through construction on many occasions. If the sound of drilling right outside our window didn’t affect him, the sound of my voice wasn’t going to do shit.

            I leaned forward and took his hand, lifted his arm up. I let it fall and winced when he made no move to stop himself from hitting the pillow. Almost of their own accord, my hands took his arm again and lifted it up over his face.

            The _smack_ when his palm hit his cheek felt like a slap to my own face. I sprang forward and pressed a fist to his chest, rubbing the skin as hard as I could. I'd read somewhere that if you couldn't get someone to wake up, this would help because it was such an uncomfortable feeling. My heart was in my throat as I came to the realization that it was having literally zero affect on him.

            There was only a split second of nothingness before I was scrambling off the bed and fumbling for my phone off the bedside table.

            “My fiancé is unconscious,” I practically screamed when the operator asked what the emergency was. I opened my mouth to apologize, but the words were cut off by her explanation that an ambulance was on the way. “Thank you,” I sighed, and the phone slipped through my fingers as I slumped down to the floor, bringing my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out my tumblr (reederjoe) for visual aides on the flowers I mentioned, plus a photo of Dan's engagement ring.


	6. Phil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil finds out what was causing all his problems (it's such a Phil-thing, too)  
> Phan meets some fans  
> Dan's fanboy secrets are exposed  
> A lil drabble about the marriage license

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to get into a normal posting schedule (let's all laugh together)

**8-5-17**

There was an impossibly annoying beeping noise right in my ear. My first thought was that it was an alarm clock, and I reached out blindly to switch it off. That’s when I realized there were things sticking out of my skin, and it felt tight. I opened my eyes and was greeted with a very concerned-looking Dan not even six inches from my face.

            “Oh my god,” were the first words out of his mouth, and I started to ask why he was practically sitting on top of me, and then I caught sight of the tubing jutting out of my arm. It was connected to a bag on a pole, and at the same moment that I saw the monitor that was responsible for the beeping, I also smelled the unmistakable scent of heavy-duty cleaning solution and Band-Aids.

            “What am I doing in the hospital?” I demanded, trying to sit up and failing miserably when I couldn’t even lift my head off the pillow. Dan was still staring at me with wide eyes, and I was suddenly aware of a different pressure in my other hand, and I looked over to see him squeezing my fingers. A second later, his lips were on mine, soft and warm.

            “You scared the hell out of me,” Dan whispered, breath tickling my chin, and his hands were in my hair, smoothing my fringe back.

            “What happened?” I asked, utter confusion rippling through me. I closed my eyes again as I racked my brain. The last thing I remembered was holding him in the kitchen, promising to call the doctor about-

            “They said you had a severe vitamin deficiency,” Dan explained, and I had to stifle a laugh. Only I could manage to land myself in the hospital because of not taking my vitamins. “It was causing chronic dehydration, which- it turns out- also explains your lips.” My eyes popped open at that.

            “Huh,” I said quietly, fingering the IV tubing in my hands. “Last night must’ve been pretty rough on you.” I glanced over at him and gave a sheepish smile. “Sorry about that.”

            “You’ve been out for two days,” Dan told me then, and I shot straight up, feeling a sudden burst of adrenaline. His hands were on my shoulders as he said, “Don’t overdo it.” There was a moment of silence and then he went on. “They said not to worry because it was just that your body was too exhausted from everything that’d been going on.”

            “But?” I prompted, because there was always a _but_.

            “I overheard the nurses talking last night,” He explained in a low voice, as if he didn’t want anyone else hearing. “They’d said it was one of the worst cases of vitamin D deficiency they’d ever seen.”

            “This happened because I can’t drink milk?” I blurted out, interrupting whatever else he’d been about to say. Of all the things that could have possibly been wrong with me-

            “They told me you’d wake up once they got your levels back to normal,” Dan continued, ignoring my comment. He had a tight grip on my arm as he spoke. “But I heard them say that there was a chance you’d slip into a coma.” He took a deep breath and buried his face in my neck. His next words were muffled. “Don’t do that to me again.”

           

X  X  X  X  X

 

            I was discharged a few hours later. Dr. Abbey gave me instructions and a prescription for vitamin D, which I was apparently supposed to take once a week. I’d have to take it once a week for the rest of my life, and if I stopped, I’d end up right back in the hospital again. I couldn’t help thinking that it would be a very Phil-way to go.

            “We’ll pick this up tomorrow,” Dan informed me while we waited for Zoe. I had a brief memory of the same exact image, except our roles were reversed. He held my hand tight in his own, and I didn’t expect him to let go any time soon. I nodded once in agreement right as Zoe pulled into the pick-up space.

            “Honestly,” Zoe scolded as we drove home, “I’m not even surprised. You two have the worst habits I’ve ever seen.” I met her eyes in the rear-view mirror and tried not to blush at her words. She was right, of course. Dan and I hardly ever even left the house.            “Thank God you’re okay.”

            “Yeah,” Dan agreed, laying his head on my shoulder. He got very clingy when things were stressful. Not that I was complaining.

 

**29-5-17**

“You took your pill, right?” It’d been nearly a month since the incident, three weeks’ worth of mega doses, but every Monday, Dan still asked. I just smiled and nodded because I knew it was going to be that way for a while.

            “All good,” I promised, and he smiled back. We made our way down the street hand-in-hand, reveling in the fact that we no longer had to pretend we weren’t together in public. It’d been over a year since we’d come out on YouNow (I still shuddered when I remembered what Dan had almost put me through) and things had actually died down enough that nobody really cared to see us out in the open.

            “I told you they lived near here!”

            “Look, they’re holding hands!”

            “Damn those lucky bastards.”

            Still, there were always fans.

            I turned toward the voices automatically, pulling Dan with me. Two girls stood at the corner of an intersection we’d just crossed, phones held up and cameras flashing. Their faces turned beet-red when they realized they’d been caught, but that didn’t stop them from staring at the spot where mine and Dan’s hands were.

            “Hello,” I called out cheerfully, apparently causing them to drop their phones to the pavement. They scrambled to snatch them back up while Dan and I backtracked to meet them at the stoplight. “Fans?”

            “Oh my god,” said the first girl, nervous fingers in her dark hair. The second girl let out a nervous giggle, and I released Dan’s hand to give them both hugs. “We didn’t expect you could hear us.”

            “Oh, Phil’s got great hearing,” Dan told them, grinning impossibly wide. We spent the next few minutes taking selfies and hugging again, and then I asked for their names.

            “I’m Daisy,” said the brunette, patting her own chest. “And this is Payton.” She tapped the blonde-haired girl’s shoulder and they both smiled.

            “Beautiful,” I said, and their cheeks turned pink. I started to say something else, but stopped when someone’s phone started ringing.

            “Oh, shoot,” Daisy fretted, pressing a button and holding the screen to her ear. She looked over at Payton and said, “We’re so late. We gotta go.”

            “Have a great day,” I called out, and they waved as they hurried away. I could hear them giggling about what had just happened, and I turned to Dan to see his dimple popping out a bit. He nearly shouted when I suddenly reached out to poke it. “Sorry,” I told him, even though I really wasn’t (and he knew it, too), “I just love you.”

            “Why do I put up with you?” He tried to sound irritated, but he was smiling too widely to be taken seriously. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him close.

            “Because you love me!”

            “Oh, right,” he agreed right before tilting his chin down to kiss me.

 

X  X  X  X  X

 

**4-6-17**

“I’m telling you, Dan,” Louise was saying. I stopped at the door leading into our lounge and watched his expression slowly growing into that of an excited child. I would’ve been the same way had I not already been told the news. Louise had texted me an hour before arriving to make sure it wasn’t something Dan would be totally against.

            “You’re shitting me,” Dan insisted, eyes wide. He looked up a second later and motioned for me to come in. “Phil, you’ll never believe it.”

            “What’s that?” I asked, taking the chair beside him at the dining table. I already knew what he’d say, of course, but his expression right now was too good to pass up.

            “Markiplier is going to film our wedding.”

            Besides the fact that my heart did a little somersault upon hearing _our wedding_ , it was very amusing to see his fanboy personality in full effect. It was quite entertaining to listen to him gush about the videos Mark put out, even before. He might have been one of Dan’s favourite YouTubers.

            “That’s awesome!” I said honestly, and he slid a hand over to squeeze my fingers. “How did that happen?”

            “I was looking into some people who have experience with videography,” Louise explained, “and he was on the list. I’ve seen some of the work he did years ago. It’s quite good. So, I got in touch with him.”

            “This is amazing,” Dan commented, still grinning. It was really nice to see him so happy about planning, especially since he’d been so stressed about most of the decisions the past couple months. I understood, though- he wanted it to be perfect.

            “After he got over the initial shock of finding out you two haven’t been together this whole time”- just like everyone else on the planet (It sometimes made me wonder how we were so oblivious when everyone else could apparently see it so clearly) - “and said if he wasn’t already booked for that week, he’d definitely be there.”

            “He just called her this morning to confirm it,” Dan finished, practically bouncing in his seat. I patted his knee in an attempt to calm him down, but he was too hyped. “Apparently he’s going to bring a few people with him.”

            “I can’t wait,” I assured him, and I really was excited. Everything was coming together so smoothly, even with the little incident a few weeks ago. His brown eyes had a twinkle in them, one of the few things that let you know he was truly happy. “There’s only a couple more months left, you know.”

            “About that,” Louise cut in, jabbing a finger at me. “We need to discuss the marriage certificate.” She produced a folder from her purse and laid out a few documents in front of us. “I’ve taken the liberty of printing out each version, so you can see which is best.”

            There were three versions: one where I took Dan’s last name, one where he took my last name, and one where we hyphenated.

            “Damn, Lou,” Dan observed, flipping through the pages. “Is there anything you _haven’t_ thought of?”

            “Not really,” she said proudly, and then she tapped the papers with her fingernail. “I need a decision by the end of the week.” We’d talked about it some, but never really came to a conclusion. It honestly had never been one of our priorities. Of course, now we were in the home stretch. Everything was boiling down to one point, and it felt kind of like stage fright.

            “Honestly, I think we should hyphenate.” Dan’s voice shook me out of my thoughts, and I looked at him expectantly. “That way, people still see us as mostly independent people. And we won’t have to change our twitter handles.” He laughed at himself, but he did make a good point. I kind of liked my last name, anyway.

            “I think you’re right,” I told him with a nod. “Dan Howell-Lester has a nice ring to it.”

            “And so does Phil Lester-Howell,” he agreed with another grin.

            “You guys are adorable.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There was foreshadowing in this chapter. Just saying.

**Author's Note:**

> Are you ready for this?


End file.
